The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1887-11-10

change or terminate it by mutual con.
sent, as they can all other contracts.
There is in the Royal Library of Paris q
written contract made in 1897, between
two persons of noble birth in Armagnal.
The husband and wife we're bound to
each other for seven years. 1t was also
agreed that the parties should have the
right to renew the tie at the end of that
time if they mutually agreed; but if not,
the children were to be equally divided,
and if the number should chance not to
be even, they were to draw lots for the
odd one.
The Roman Church alone regarded
marriage as a sacrament, but all the
other churches recognized it as divine
institution, and, accordingly, every de.
nomination has provided religious servi.
ces for its solemnizstion. So strong a
hold did the church in England gain
upon it that for long time the regula.
ton of marriage and divorce was almost
exclusively under the church's jurisdic.
tion.
Among the Romans there were three
ways of obtaining wife-by capture,
sale or gift. When Roman bought
wife, and this was the usual way, the
ceremony that followed was merely gone
through for the sake of having indisputa-
BILE evidence of the sale. The head of
the family had to give her over to the
husband in the presence of witnesses, and
it is from this that we now have the GUS
tom of giving away the bride. Before
the period of Rome's greatness, the par.
ties could dissolve the marriage by mu-
tual consent. When they wished to ter
inmate the contract, they usually went
before an altar and in The presence of
witnesses declared the marriage at an
end. AT and after the time of Rome's
greatness the marriage was indissoluble.
The Roman husband took his wife not
as her husband, but as her father. She
came into his family the same almost as
an adopted daughter. Originally the
husband had absolute and complete con.
troll over her and her property. Even
after bis death she was subjected to any
guardianship that he might have had
appointed for her during his lifetime.
Buta change came in her condition, and
came as changes usually come, from one
extreme to another. The wife was now
subject to the tutelage of guardians ap.
pointed by her own family. This tutelage
gave-her very Independent position as
to her separate estate and person.
Before this change came, and even
afterward, there was exercised among
the Romans complete tyranny by the
head of the family over bis relations
which were members of his family. AS
head of the family the eldest male was
always the head. He had power not
only over his relatives, but all persons
connected with his household aud his
children's households. While the father
lived his son was subject to him, although
the son might be 40 years old and have
large family Of his own. The grand
children were subject to the grandfather
the same as their own father. The FAM
ly was then regarded much as We now
regard the individual. Ifa member COM
mitted crime the whole family was
held responsible, and it was perfectly
lawful for the injured family to get
revenge OF satisfaction even if it we're
necessary to exterminate the whole
offending family. This was carried to
such an extent that sometimes whole
families were destroyed.
The blood feud, and it was we'll named,
descended from father to son. 1t was to
the Roman, in effect, what the inherited
curse was to the Greek. The feud was
kept up not so much for the sake of pun
ishment as to prevent the supposed lia-
bility of the offending family to commit
fresh offences. With all their peculiar
customs in regard to the family, it must
be said to their credit that they never to
any extent practiced polygamy.
If the Romans did not countenance
polygamy, the Hebrews did; and they
had more peculiar custom. There was
a law among them called the Levirate,
which means brothcrin-l law, and accord.
ing to this law, at the death of the
husband, the next oldest unmarried
brother.in law of the widow married her
if there were no children. In this way
the wife of the eldest brother might, in
the course Of time, have been the wife of
all the brothers. This custom afterward
extended 10 many Of the western nations,
but the marriage took place whether
there were any children or not. There
was another kind of marriage called
polygnia, and, like the Levirate, it
extended to the western counties. This,
however, did not gain much foothold
among The Hebrews. Polygnia was sim.
ply polygamy reversed. According to it
the woman was the head of the house,
and might have as many legal husbands
at one time as she pleased. Her children
bore her name, and recognized her as
head of the house.
Some of the customs attending q
Hebraic marriage were peculiar. The
bridegroom dressed himself in the most
gorgeous style he could command. He
next perfumed himself with frankinccnse
and myrrh. Then he went forth covered
with garlan.|s, or, if he were rich, he
would wear n circlet of gold and ride a